“This keeps us where we are now,” Caffery said. “We need this funding to operate as we currently do.”

The district is in charge of feeding water into Bayou Lafourche from the Mississippi River and maintaining the waterway.

In return, the parish and city of Thibodaux operate treatment facilities to bring the water from the bayou to residents’ homes. Terrebonne’s Consolidated Water District also has a treatment facility that takes its water from the bayou to be used in the parish, but its millage isn’t up for renewal this year.

The district’s primary expense or function is operating the pumping station on the Mississippi River in Donaldsonville.

Chiasson said the pumping station is similar to those that move water from drainage canals over levees in the area except it is “supersized.”

The station uses massive 48-inch pumps to put a “couple of million” gallons of water into the bayou each day, Chiasson said.

The district employees 15 people because the pumping station must be constantly staffed. It also does work to maintain the health of the bayou such as battling the ever-present water lilies that accumulate in it.

The district begins at the Mississippi River in Donaldsonville and stretches through Assumption Parish, encompassing all of Lafourche. The city of Houma gets 75 percent of its drinking water supply from Bayou Lafourche,

Each parish is assessed the same millage, raising $1.5 million of the $2 million the district annually operates with.

Chiasson said the district also supplements operations by charging treatment facilities a user fee per 1,000 gallons of water used.

Bayou Lafourche is the sole source of drinking water for Lafourche Parish. In all, the district serves 300,000 people, Caffery said.

The district is also tasked with helping stem the intrusion of saltwater up the bayou from the Gulf, Chiasson said.

The district has a number of separate projects planned or in progress to improve the health of the bayou, but these are financed by grants independent of the millage, Caffery said.

Caffery said another important part of the district’s work is raising awareness about the importance of the bayou.

“We drive 60 mph by the bayou and don’t notice a lot of these things,” Caffery said. “We want to bring public awareness to the bayou. You won’t get water that you can drink or take a bath in if we don’t take care of this bayou.”

<p>The Bayou Lafourche Freshwater District is asking voters to renew its property tax Dec. 8 so it can continue providing drinking water to the parish. </p><p>District manager Archie Chiasson, Jr. said the 2.11 mill tax has been at the same rate since 1950. </p><p>Hugh Caffery, chairman of the district's commission, said renewal won't change anything. </p><p>“This keeps us where we are now,” Caffery said. “We need this funding to operate as we currently do.” </p><p>The district is in charge of feeding water into Bayou Lafourche from the Mississippi River and maintaining the waterway. </p><p>In return, the parish and city of Thibodaux operate treatment facilities to bring the water from the bayou to residents' homes. Terrebonne's Consolidated Water District also has a treatment facility that takes its water from the bayou to be used in the parish, but its millage isn't up for renewal this year. </p><p>The district's primary expense or function is operating the pumping station on the Mississippi River in Donaldsonville. </p><p>Chiasson said the pumping station is similar to those that move water from drainage canals over levees in the area except it is “supersized.”</p><p>The station uses massive 48-inch pumps to put a “couple of million” gallons of water into the bayou each day, Chiasson said. </p><p>The district employees 15 people because the pumping station must be constantly staffed. It also does work to maintain the health of the bayou such as battling the ever-present water lilies that accumulate in it. </p><p>The district begins at the Mississippi River in Donaldsonville and stretches through Assumption Parish, encompassing all of Lafourche. The city of Houma gets 75 percent of its drinking water supply from Bayou Lafourche, </p><p>Each parish is assessed the same millage, raising $1.5 million of the $2 million the district annually operates with. </p><p>Chiasson said the district also supplements operations by charging treatment facilities a user fee per 1,000 gallons of water used. </p><p>Bayou Lafourche is the sole source of drinking water for Lafourche Parish. In all, the district serves 300,000 people, Caffery said. </p><p>The district is also tasked with helping stem the intrusion of saltwater up the bayou from the Gulf, Chiasson said. </p><p>The district has a number of separate projects planned or in progress to improve the health of the bayou, but these are financed by grants independent of the millage, Caffery said. </p><p>Caffery said another important part of the district's work is raising awareness about the importance of the bayou. </p><p>“We drive 60 mph by the bayou and don't notice a lot of these things,” Caffery said. “We want to bring public awareness to the bayou. You won't get water that you can drink or take a bath in if we don't take care of this bayou.”</p>